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Ecological Problems Many rivers and lakes nowadays are polluted with different waist products, which are very harmful for plants and animals living in them. Some species are extinct today. Water in the majority of rivers and lakes has become undrinkable. In big industrial towns and cities the air is very dirty. Sometimes people have to close the windows not to let it in. When it is not windy smog is hanging over the city and people breathe in poisonous substances. Some waist products are buried in the ground, they poison soil and make harm to the plants which grow on it.

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Where Does Acid Rain Come from? People have leaved on the Earth for thousands of years. They tried to make their life safer, easier and more comfortable. They have built big houses, huge factories and plants, lots of different cars and machines and power stations. People have leaved on the Earth for thousands of years. They tried to make their life safer, easier and more comfortable. They have built big houses, huge factories and plants, lots of different cars and machines and power stations.

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Where Does Acid Rain Come From? The smoke from cars, factories and power stations go into the air. This smoke contains sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide. These substances mix with water vapour in the atmosphere and form sulphuric acid and nitric acid. Sunlight turns these acids into poisonous oxidants which fall in rain or snow onto the trees.

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How Does Acid Rain Influence Trees? Acid rain influences deciduous trees like oak, beech and birch as well as coniferous trees like fir and pine. First the branches turn yellow and brown. Then the trees needles or leaves fall. The roots and trunk shrink. Finally trees die. In the Black Forest in southern Germany 75% of the trees have been damaged or killed. Acid rain influences deciduous trees like oak, beech and birch as well as coniferous trees like fir and pine. First the branches turn yellow and brown. Then the trees needles or leaves fall. The roots and trunk shrink. Finally trees die. In the Black Forest in southern Germany 75% of the trees have been damaged or killed.

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Why Are Trees So Important ? Trees are important because they provide a home for many other plants, and animals too. They protect the flowers which grow on the forest floor. They provide food for insects, reptiles, birds and mammals. They protect the soil from the wind and the rain. Most important of all, the forests are the lungs of the planet. Trees produce the oxygen which we breathe. If the trees die, we will, too. Trees are important because they provide a home for many other plants, and animals too. They protect the flowers which grow on the forest floor. They provide food for insects, reptiles, birds and mammals. They protect the soil from the wind and the rain. Most important of all, the forests are the lungs of the planet. Trees produce the oxygen which we breathe. If the trees die, we will, too.